Systems and methods of discovering and controlling devices without explicit addressing

ABSTRACT

A method of discovering a device in a communication network having multiple interconnected nodes includes continuously monitoring, by a device to be discovered, any IP packets sent by a discoverer. The method further includes transmitting, by the discoverer, an IP packet destined for a downstream device and receiving, by the device to be discovered, the IP packet. The method further includes determining, by the device to be discovered, whether the IP packet is intended for the device to be discovered. If the IP packet is not intended for the device to be discovered, retransmitting, by the device to be discovered, the IP packet to the downstream device via an egress port of the device to be discovered.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application incorporates by reference in their entireties thefollowing applications, all of which have the same filing date as thepresent application: “Programmable Small Form-Factor Pluggable Module,”by Robitaille and Ostiguy, Attorney Docket No. 268665-000019USPT;“Systems and Methods of Detecting and Assigning IP Addresses to Deviceswith ARP Requests,” by Robitaille and Lemieux, Attorney Docket No.268665-000020USPT; “Systems and Methods of Using Beacon Messages toDiscover Devices Across Subnets,” by Robitaille and Bouffard, AttorneyDocket No. 268665-000021USPT and “Systems and Methods of Installing andOperating Devices without Explicit Network Addresses,” by Robitaille andLemieux, Attorney Docket No. 268665-000023USPT.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention is directed towards addressing the need for discoveringwhen a device configured to perform Service Operations Administrationand Maintenance (SOAM) functions has been connected on a network withoutbeing assigned unique addressing information. This discovery process canbe carried out by a discoverer/tester that is located in the network.The discoverer could either be implemented in a centralized manner or adistributed manner.

BACKGROUND

Network operators are looking to deploy Service OperationsAdministration and Maintenance (SOAM) devices at different points insidetheir network infrastructure and may, at times, decide to redeploy someof the devices as their network topology and service offerings evolve.In order to reduce the setup time of these devices, it is useful tolimit and ideally eliminate the need to manually re-configure thesedevices as they are installed or redeployed. Furthermore, since theseSOAM devices are not always permanently installed in a given network, itis desirable to avoid having to reserve layer-3 addresses for thesedevices.

BRIEF SUMMARY

There is therefore a need to be able to discover a device in a networkwhen it may not actively participate in the normal network protocolsthat are in use and therefore not have unique addressing information atlayer 3. It should also be noted that most of the time, the IDs orlabels used by the protocols are not the same in both directions. Sincethe SOAM device is not actively participating in the underlyingcommunication protocols (e.g., Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS),Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol Version 3 (L2TPv3), GPRS Tunneling ProtocolUser Plane (GTP-U), etc.), the device (e.g., Small Form-Factor PluggableDevice (SFP), Network Interface Device (NID), etc.) does not know whichID or label to use to communicate. The detection or configuration of theaddressing information for a specific tunnel is assumed to have alreadytaken place before the steps covered by this invention.

The SOAM device must also be able to be discovered without (but notexcluding) being pre-programmed with information specific to the networkor the control infrastructure.

According to one aspect of the present invention, a method fordiscovering a device in a communication network having multipleinterconnected nodes includes continuously monitoring, by a device to bediscovered, any IP packets sent by a discoverer. The method furtherincludes transmitting, by the discoverer, an IP packet destined for adownstream device and receiving, by the device to be discovered, the IPpacket. The method further includes determining, by the device to bediscovered, whether the IP packet is intended for the device to bediscovered. If the IP packet is not intended for the device to bediscovered, retransmitting, by the device to be discovered, the IPpacket to the downstream device via an egress port of the device to bediscovered.

According to a further aspect of the present invention, a method fordiscovering a device in a communication network having multipleinterconnected nodes includes continuously monitoring, by a device to bediscovered any IP packets sent by a discoverer inside a layer-3 tunnelestablished between the discoverer and a remote node. The method furtherincludes transmitting, by the discoverer, an IP packet to the remotenode and receiving, by the device to be discovered, the IP packet. Themethod further includes determining, by the device to be discovered,whether the IP packet is intended for the device to be discovered. Ifthe device to be discovered determined that the IP packet is notintended for the device to be discovered, retransmitting to the remotenode, by the device to be discovered, the IP packet via an egress portof the device to be discovered.

According to an additional aspect of the present invention, a method ofdiscovering a device in a communication network having multipleinterconnected nodes includes continuously monitoring, by a first deviceto be discovered, any IP packets sent by a discoverer. The methodfurther includes transmitting, by the discoverer, a first IP packet witha frame to a downstream device and receiving, by the first device to bediscovered, the first IP packet with the frame. The first device to bediscovered determines whether the first IP packet has a User DatagramProtocol (UDP) port number that matches an internet assigned numbersauthority (IRNA) assigned UDP port number. The first device to bediscovered processes the first IP packet with the frame to verify thatthe packet is a discovery type packet. If the first device to bediscovered detects that the first IP packet is a discovery type packet,the first device to be discovered verifies that discovery is activatedfor the first device to be discovered. If the discovery is activated forthe first device to be discovered, the first device to be discoveredsends an advertisement to the discoverer. If the first device to bediscovered detects that the IP packet is not a discovery type packet orif the discovery is not activated for the first device to be discovered,the first device to be discovered retransmits the first IP packet to thedownstream device via an egress port of the first device to bediscovered.

According to an additional aspect of the present invention, a system ofdiscovering a device in a communication network having multipleinterconnected nodes includes a first device to be discovered includinga first egress port; a discoverer; and a downstream device, wherein thefirst device to be discovered is located between the discoverer and thedownstream device. The first device to be discovered is configured tocontinuously monitor any IP packets sent by the discoverer destined forthe downstream device. The first device to be discovered is furtherconfigured to receive a first IP packet and to determine whether thefirst IP packet has a User Datagram Protocol (UDP) port number thatmatches an internet assigned numbers authority (IRNA) assigned UDP portnumber and whether the first IP packet is a discovery type packet. Thefirst device is configured to send an advertisement to the discoverer ifthe first device to be discovered detects that the first IP packet is adiscovery type packet and if discovery is activated for the first deviceto be discovered or to retransmit the first IP packet to the downstreamdevice via the first egress port if the first IP packet is not adiscovery type packet or if discovery is not activated.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing and other advantages of the present disclosure will becomeapparent upon reading the following detailed description and uponreference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 illustrates a network where a single device is ready to bediscovered by a discoverer node;

FIG. 2 shows a flow of User Datagram Protocol (UDP) messages exchangedbetween a discoverer node and the device to discover without the needfor a unique IP address being assigned to the device to discover;FIG. 3illustrates a network where multiple devices belonging to the samemanagement domain or operator are ready to be discovered by a discoverernode;

FIG. 4 shows a flow of UDP messages exchanged between a discoverer nodeand a plurality of devices to discover that belong to the samemanagement domain or operator without the need for a unique IP addressbeing assigned to the devices to discover;

FIG. 5 illustrates a network where multiple devices belonging tomultiple management domains or operators are ready to be discovered by adiscoverer node;

FIG. 6 shows the flow of UDP messages exchanged between a discoverernode and a plurality of devices that belong to different managementdomains (or operators) without the need for a unique IP address beingassigned to the devices to discover.

While the invention is susceptible to various modifications andalternative forms, specific embodiments have been shown by way ofexample in the drawings and will be described in detail herein. Itshould be understood, however, that the invention is not intended to belimited to the particular forms disclosed. Rather, the invention is tocover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling withinthe spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Network Operators increasingly need to perform SOAM and other managementfunctions to reduce costs and improve the initial activation of theirnetwork as well as the on-going operation and service offerings.Depending on the operating preferences of the network operator, the SOAMfunctions may be performed by devices that are not necessarilypermanently installed in a given network or sub-network. Furthermore,some network operators are looking to simplify and shorten the amount oftime it requires to deploy and configure the devices used for the SOAMfunctions. It is preferable to avoid allocating unique layer-3 addressesto these devices in order to save time, money and avoid temporaryaddressing changes by preserving the layer-3 addressing space as is.

Some network operators further rely on third party operators to provideadditional services, such as backhaul for wireless towers. These thirdparty operators often have to meet strict service level assuranceguarantees and will therefore have to install similar, if not identical,SOAM devices to monitor the performance of the network operators anddeliver the management reporting demanded by the network operators.Network service management applications include order manager, troublemanager, billing manager, customer service manager, service levelreporter and any combination thereof,

The presence of like-devices across the same global networkinfrastructure but falling under different management domains needs tobe taken into account and the management platforms of the respectiveoperators must not interfere with one another. Different managementdomains may include an Internet Protocol (IP) domain, a Frame Relay (FR)domain, an optical domain, a Synchronous Optical Network (SONET) domain,a Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH) domain, an Asynchronous TransferMode (ATM) domain, a circuit-switched domain, and any combinationthereof.

Different types of devices can be discovered in the network using one ofthe following embodiments. The term discoverer is used to describe asystem (e.g., a testing unit, a router, a remote node, etc.) that islocal or remote to the subnet where the plurality of devices to bediscovered are located. In order to detect an eventual restart of adiscovered device, the discovered device may generate a uniquediscoverer instance ID whenever it is restarted. This discovererinstance ID should then be inserted in each discovery and othermanagement packets to allow a discovered device to detect an eventualrestart of a discoverer and therefore revert to an undiscovered stateuntil it is formally discovered again as per the methods and techniquesdescribed in this invention.

The concept is to make sure the devices to discover are in the data pathof the network traffic and are programmed to watch for specific types ofmessages from upstream discoverer nodes without the need to beindividually configured with unique layer-3 addresses. Since the devicesto discover are in the data path of other devices located downstreamfrom these devices (from the point of view of the discoverer and of thedevice to detect), it is possible to borrow the layer-3 address of oneof these downstream device without interfering with the operation of thenetwork and the downstream devices. The device to discover musttherefore be able to relay all of the traffic toward the downstreamdevice from which it borrowed a layer-3 address and conversely, must beable to let upstream traffic from the same downstream device to flowthrough it.

An example of this would be where the device to discover intercepts eachreceived packet and inspects it to see whether it is intended for thedevice. This interception is achieved by placing the device inline withthe reception path of the device, so that all packets toward and fromthe downstream device are received by the device. The packet data isinspected by the device to determine whether the packet is intended forthe device or whether it should be relayed through an egress port of thedevice. This can be achieved by placing a specific identifier within aheader portion of the packet to denote that the transmitted packet isdestined for the device to discover. This means that the device todiscover does not require a unique layer-3 address for the discoverer tocommunicate with the device.

FIG. 1 shows an example of this topology. A discoverer 101 cancommunicate with a device to discover 102 and a downstream device 109across a layer-3 network 199. Packets from the discoverer 101 towardsthe downstream device 109 will always flow through the device todiscover 102 and can therefore be intercepted and analyzed by the deviceto discover 102 without causing any without interfering with theoperation of the network or impacting the performance and behavior ofthe downstream device 109. Analyzed packets with a unique layer-3identifier other than a layer-3 address are processed by the device todiscover 102 and may trigger responses carried in layer-3 packets backto the discoverer 101 or other management actions from the device todiscover 102. Packets generated by the device to discover 102 willborrow the layer-3 addressing information of the downstream device 109.

One specific way of implementing the unique layer-3 identifier is asfollows: the device to discover 102 monitors the layer-3 traffic betweenthe discoverer 101 and the downstream device 109 (for instance IPpackets) and detects when a frame contains a UDP port number matching anInternet Assigned Numbers Authority (IRNA) assigned proprietary UDP portnumber. When such a packet is detected, further packet processing takesplace to fully validate that the packet is destined for the device todiscover 102 and not for another device to detect that would be locateddownstream from the device to discover 102. If the packet does not matchthe identifier filter, it is forwarded normally on the data path via theegress port of the device to discover 102.

In FIG. 2, the flow of layer-3 messages illustrates the discoveryprocess where a single device 202 is to be discovered. More complexscenarios are discussed below. The discoverer 201 has prior knowledge ofthe layer-3 addresses of downstream devices (e.g., 209) that have beenassigned unique layer-3 addresses. For instance, this could be anEvolved Node B (EnodeB) in an LTE network. At some intervals, eitherfixed or random, the discoverer 201 sends discovery packets 211 encodedas UDP packets with the destination address of a downstream device 209.Each discovery packet 211 uses an IRNA assigned proprietary UDP PortNumber. The payload of the discovery packets 211 may include a randomlygenerated discoverer instance ID to detect a restart of a discoverer 201since the last time the device 202 was discovered by the discoverer 201along with other information either in encoded or non-encoded form. Theencoding may be provided by any known means, including well-knowncryptographic techniques. According to one embodiment of the presentinvention, if the discoverer 202 is restarted for any reason, includingdue to a management request, power failure or other reasons, the device202 reverts to a non-discovered state and can be discovered again.

Whenever a UDP packet with the unique UDP Port Number flows through adevice to discover 202 en route toward the downstream device 209, it isintercepted by the device to discover 202 and further analyzed.According to one aspect of the present invention, the device to discover202 may determine that the UDP packet with the unique IRNA assigned UDPPort Number must be forwarded via the egress port of the device todiscover 202. When receiving discovery packets 211, the device todiscover 202 will compare the discoverer instance ID (if present) withthe previously saved discoverer instance ID (if known). If the device todiscover 202 is in a non-discovered state or if the new discovererinstance ID is different from the discovered instance ID used the lasttime the device to discover 202 was discovered by the discoverer 201, itwill remain in the non-discovered state and will reply to the discoverer201 with an advertisement packet 212 using the IP and MAC address of thedownstream device 209 as its source IP and MAC address to indicate thedevice to discover 202 is now discovered and ready to be controlled,managed and configured by the discoverer 201.

The payload of the advertisement packet 212 may contain proprietaryinformation about the device to discover 202, for instance a serialnumber, model number and other capabilities of the device to discover202. The advertisement packet 212 may be sent in an encoded or anon-encoded form. The encoding may be provided by any known means,including well-known cryptographic techniques. The discoverer 201 maythen send control, management and/or configuration packets 213 to thedevice to discover 202 having associated the device to discover 202 withthe IP address of the downstream device 209. The device to discover 202will use this management packet 213 to enter the discovered state. Themanagement packet 213 may include a unique handle assigned to the deviceto discover 202 by the discoverer 201. This unique handle will be usedby all subsequent management packets from the discoverer 201 that aredestined for the device to discover 202.

FIG. 3 illustrates a more complex scenario where there are multipledevices to be discovered between a discover 301 and a remote downstreamdevice 309. Discovery and other management packets destined for a deviceto discover 303 flowing through a device to discover 302 and a network399 must be able to reach the device to discover 303 seamlessly whileother discovery and management packets meant for the device to discover302 must not reach the device to discover 303. Additionally, packetsmeant for the downstream device 309 must flow through the device todiscover 302, the network 399 and the device to discover 303 and reachthat downstream device 309 unaltered. As in FIG. 1, the devices todiscover 302 and 303 share the same layer-3 and layer-2 address theyborrow from the downstream device 309. As in FIG. 1, the discoverer 301has prior knowledge of the IP address of the downstream device 309.

The discovery, advertisement and management packets exchanged between adiscoverer and a device to be discovered may include additionalinformation in the UDP payload such as a discoverer instance ID tohandle the above arrangement where the device to discover 303 isdownstream and in-line from the device to discover 302. In order toallow the discoverer 301 to remain in control over the discoveryprocess, each discovered device will only process a discovery packetwhen it is in a non-detected state or when the discoverer instance ID isdifferent from the previously known discoverer instance ID. Otherwise,when the device to discover 302 is in a discovered state, a discoverypacket shall be relayed via the egress port of the device (such as thedevice to discover 302) until it reaches another device to discover(such as the device to discover 303) or until it reaches the downstreamdevice 309 which should then discard the packet if it does not know howto handle UDP packets with the IRNA UDP Port Number assigned to thesepackets.

In FIG. 4, the flow of layer-3 messages illustrates the discoveryprocess where a plurality of devices is to be discovered. A discoverer401 has prior knowledge of the layer-3 addresses of downstream devicesthat have been assigned unique layer-3 addresses. For instance, thiscould be an Evolved Node B (EnodeB) in an LTE network. At someintervals, either fixed or random, the discoverer 401 sends a discoverypacket 411 encoded as a UDP packet with the destination address of adownstream device 409. The discovery packet 411 uses an IANA assignedproprietary UDP Port Number. The discovery packet may include adiscovered instance ID and other information either in encoded ornon-encoded form. The encoding may be provided by any known means,including well-known cryptographic techniques.

Whenever a UDP packet with the unique UDP Port Number flows through adevice to discover 402 en route toward the downstream device 409, it isintercepted by the device to discover 402 and further analyzed. If thedevice to discover 402 is in the non-discovered state or if thediscoverer instance ID is different from the previously known discovererinstance ID, the device to discover 402 will further analyze thediscovery packet 411. Otherwise, if the device to discover 402 is in thediscovered state, it must relay the discovery packet 411 via the egressport of the device to discover 402 toward the downstream device 409.When receiving the discovery packet 411, the device to discover 402 willsave the discoverer instance ID and will reply with an advertisementpacket 412 using the IP and MAC address of the downstream device 409 asits source IP and MAC address to indicate that the device to discover402 is now ready to be controlled, managed and configured by thediscoverer 401.

The payload of advertisement packet 412 may contain proprietaryinformation about the device to discover 402, for instance a serialnumber, model number and other capabilities of the device to discover402. The advertisement packet 412 may be sent in with or withoutencryption. The encryption may be achieved by any known means, includingwell known cryptographic techniques. The discoverer 401 will then sendcontrol, management and/or configuration packets 413 to the device todiscover 402 having associated the device to discover 402 with the IPaddress of the downstream device 409. The device to discover 402 willenter the discovered state and the device to discover 402 will use thismanagement packet 413 to enter the discovered state.

The management packet 413 may include a unique handle assigned to thedevice to discover 402 by the discoverer and this unique handle will beused by all subsequent management packets from the discoverer 401 thatare destined for the device to discover 402. The discoverer 401 thenproceeds with the sending of additional discovery packets, includingdiscovery packet 421, with destination IP address set to the IP addressof the downstream device 409 to determine whether there are otherdevices to discover downstream of the device to discover 402 and before(upstream of) the downstream device 409. The discovery packet 421 isencoded with a destination IP address set to the IP address of thedownstream device 409. The remainder of the encoding of the discoverypacket 421 is as discussed previously with respect to discovery packet413. Upon receiving the discovery packet 421, the device to discover 402will determine that it is a discovery packet and, since the device todiscover 402 is in the discovered state and the discoverer instance IDis unchanged, it will relay the discovery packet 421 via the egress portof the device to discover 402 toward the downstream device 409.

When the discovery packet 421 reaches a device to discover 403, thediscovery packer 421 will be analyzed to determine whether the UDP PortNumber is set to the IANA assigned number. Since the device to discover403 is in the non-discovered state or the discoverer instance ID ischanged from the previously saved value at the device to discover 403,the device to discover 403 will determine that the discovery packet 421is meant for it. The device to discover 403 will prepare anadvertisement packet 422 with a source IP and MAC address of thedownstream device 409. The device to discover 403 sends theadvertisement packet 422, via the device to discover 402, to thediscover 401. The advertisement packet 422 may include proprietaryinformation about the device to discover 403 in the UDP payload. Theadvertisement UDP packet 422 may be sent in an encrypted ornon-encrypted form by the device to discover 403. As with device 402,the discoverer 401 may then send a management packet 423 to furthercontrol, manage and/or configure the device to discover 403 and thedevice to discover 403 will use this management packet 423 to enter thediscovered state. The management packet 423 is sent to the device todiscover 403 via the device to discover 402.

The management packet 423 may include a unique handle assigned to thedevice to discover 403 by the discoverer 401 and this unique handle willbe used by all subsequent management packets from the discoverer 401that are destined for the device to discover 403. Should a discoverypacket be sent by the device to discover 403 after it has entered intothe discovered state and with a discoverer instance ID that has notchanged, such a discovery packet will be forwarded via the egress portof the device to discover 403 and will reach the downstream device 409.Since the downstream device 409 does not know how to handle packets withthe unique UDP Port Number assigned by IRNA, it should simply discardthat packet.

FIG. 5 illustrates a scenario where there are multiple devices to bediscovered between the discoverer 501 and a remote downstream device 509and where these devices to be discovered belong to distinct managementdomains. Discovery and other management packets destined for a device todiscover 503 flowing through a device to discover 502 and a network 599must be able to reach the device to discover 503 seamlessly while otherdiscovery and management packets meant for the device to discover 502must not reach the device to discover 503. Furthermore, devices todiscover B1 and B2, although they share the same capability to processmanagement packets from the discoverer 501, shall not act on thesemanagement packets since the devices B1 and B2 belong to a differentmanagement domain. According to one aspect of the present invention, thedevices B1 and B2 may be identical in nature and/or functionality to thedevices to discover 502 and 503, but belong to a different networkoperator than the devices to discover 502 and 503. This may be the casewhere a third party network operator provides backhaul for a cellulartower. The third party network operator may install Network InterfaceDevices (NIDs) to monitor the performance for the backhaul segments thethird party network operator operates. The main network operator alsodeploys end to end NIDs to monitor the overall performance of thenetwork. The main network operator would not detect devices B1 and B2since they do not belong to that operator. Yet, devices B1 and B2 willbe in the same path between the discoverer 501 and the downstream device509. This is the reason for using different domain IDs. In some SOAMprotocols, this is sometimes referred to a MEG Level. According to otheraspects of the present invention, other types of IDs may be used in caseMEG levels are not usable nor desirable depending on implementation.

Finally, packets meant for the downstream device 509 mush flow throughthe device to discover 502, the device B1, the network 599, the deviceB2 and the device to discover 503 and reach the downstream device 509unaltered. As is the case with the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 and 3,the devices to discover 502 and 503 share the same layer-3 and layer-2addresses they borrow from the downstream device 509. As is the casewith the previous embodiment, the discoverer 501 has prior knowledge ofthe IP address of the downstream device 509.

In FIG. 6, the flow of layer-3 messages illustrates the discoveryprocess where a plurality of devices is to be discovered and where notall devices to be discovered belong to the same management domain. Thediscoverer 601 has prior knowledge of the layer-3 addresses ofdownstream devices that have been assigned unique layer-3 addresses. Forinstance, this could be an Evolved Node B (EnodeB) in an LTE network. Atsome intervals, either fixed or random, the discoverer 601 sends adiscovery packet 611 encoded as a UDP packet with the destinationaddress of the downstream device 609. The discovery packet 611 uses anIANA assigned proprietary UDP Port Number. The discovery packet 611includes a unique management domain identifier that is known by thedevices to discover 602 and 603 and that differs from the managementdomain known by the devices B1 and B2. The discovery packet 611 mayinclude a discoverer instance ID and other information either in anencoded or a non-encoded form. The encoding may be provided by any knownmeans, including well-known cryptographic techniques. Whenever a UDPpacket with the unique UDP Port Number flows through the device todiscover 602 en route toward the downstream device 609, it isintercepted by the device to discover 602 and further analyzed. If thedevice to discover 602 is in the non-discovered state or the discovererinstance ID is different from the previously saved value at the deviceto discover 602, the device to discover 602 will further analyze thediscovery packet 611. Otherwise, if the device to discover 602 is in thediscovered state, it must relay the discovery packet 611 via the egressport of the device to discover 602 toward the downstream device 609.When receiving the discovery packet 611, the device to discover 602 willsave the discoverer instance ID and will reply to the discoverer 601with an advertisement packet 612 using the IP and MAC address of thedownstream device 609 as its source IP and source MAC address toindicate the device to discover 602 is now ready to be controlled,managed and configured by the discoverer 601.

The payload of advertisement packet 612 may contain proprietaryinformation about the device to discover 602, for instance a serialnumber, model number and other capabilities of the device to discover602. The advertisement packet 612 may be sent in an encrypted ornon-encrypted form, wherein the encryption is achieved via any knowntechniques, including cryptographic techniques. The discoverer 601 willthen send control, management and/or configuration packets 613 to thedevice to discover 602 having associated device 602 with the IP addressof device 609 and the device to discover 602 will enter the discoveredstate and the device to discover 602 will use this management packet toenter the discovered state. The management packet 613 may include aunique handle assigned to the device to discover 602 by the discoverer601 and this unique handle will be used by all subsequent managementpackets from the discoverer 601 that are destined for the device todiscover 602.

The discoverer 601 then proceeds with the sending of additionaldiscovery packets with destination IP address set to the IP address ofthe downstream device 609 to determine whether there are other devicesto discover downstream of the device to discover 602 and before thedownstream device 609. The discovery packet 621 is encoded with adestination IP address set to the IP address of the downstream device609 and with a management domain known to the device to discover 603(same as the device to discover 602). The remainder of the encoding ofthe discovery packet 621 is as discussed previously with regard to,e.g., packet 213. Upon receiving the discovery packet 621, the device todiscover 602 will determine that it is a discovery packet and since itis in the discovered state, it will relay the discovery packet 621 viathe egress port of the device to discover 602 toward the downstreamdevice 609.

When the discovery packet 621 reaches the device B1, regardless of thestate of the device B1, it will relay the discovery packet 621 via itsegress port since it belongs to a different management domain. The samestep will take place when the discovery packet 621 reaches the deviceB2. The device B2 will simply relay the discovery packet 621 via itsegress port since the device B2 belongs to a different managementdomain. When the discovery packet 621 ultimately reaches the device todiscover 603, it will be analyzed to determine whether the UDP PortNumber is set to the IANA assigned number. Since the device to discover603 is in the non-discovered state, the device to discover 603 willdetermine that discovery packet 621 is meant for it and will prepare anadvertisement packet 622 with a source IP and a source MAC address ofthe downstream device 609 and may include proprietary information aboutthe device to discover 603 in the UDP payload.

The advertisement UDP packet 622 may be sent in the clear or encryptedform by the device to discover 603. As with the device to discover 602,the discoverer 601 may then send a management packet 623 to furthercontrol, manage and/or configure the device to discover 603. The deviceto discover 603 will use this management packet 623 to enter thediscovered state. The management packet 623 may include a unique handleassigned to the device to discover 603 by the discoverer 601 and thisunique handle will be used by all subsequent management packets from thediscoverer 601 that are destined for the device to discover 603. Shoulda discovery packet be seen by the device to discover 603 after it hasentered into the discovered state and with an unchanged discovererinstance ID, it will be forwarded via the egress port of the device todiscover 603 and reach the downstream device 609. Since the downstreamdevice 609 does not know how to handle packets with the unique UDP PortNumber assigned by IANA, it should simply discard that packet. Anyfurther management packets from the discoverer 601 that flow through thedevices B1 and B2 should be relayed via the egress port of these devicesB1 and B2 unaltered since they belong to a different management domain.

In an alternate embodiment, the packet exchange between a discoverer anda device to discover takes place inside a layer-3 tunnel such as: MPLS,L2TPv3, GTP-U, etc. terminated at a remote device. The device todiscover is programmed to decode the header of the layer-3 tunnelingprotocol and determine if the special UDP Port Number assigned by theIRNA is present. When a layer-3 tunnel is used, the device is alsoprogrammed to generate the appropriate tunnel header to be able to reachthe discoverer using the IP address borrowed from a downstream device.

In yet another embodiment, the discoverer inserts a Time to Live (TTL)value in each discovery packet. Upon receiving a discovery packet at adevice to discover (or that is already discovered) and with the samemanagement domain identifier as the device to discover, the TTL value isdecremented by 1 and if it does not reach a value of 0 (zero), thediscovery packet (with the decrement TTL value) will be forwarded viathe egress port of the device to discover. Otherwise, the TTL value is 0(zero) and the processing of the discovery packet and the remainder ofthe 3-way handshake by the device (advertisement packet from the deviceand a management reply from the discoverer) takes place as previouslydescribed. Whenever a discoverer detects a new device, it will begin thenext discovery sequence with a TTL value incremented by 1 (one) from thepreviously used TTL value. If the discoverer does not detect a newdevice within a specific timeout period, it will resume the discoveryprocess after a random or fixed delay and with a TTL value reset to 1.

In an embodiment, the discoverer may also be used as a management proxyon behalf of the devices it has discovered. This is particularly usefulwhen the discovered devices can only be reached inside a layer-3tunneling protocol such as: MPLS, L2TPv3, GTP-U, etc. When operating insuch a management proxy mode, the discoverer may present a list ofdevices along with their unique identifiers (for instance a serialnumber) and could be used as the source of management packets for eachof the devices. In this role, the discoverer could also act as anaggregation point for management information for the discovered devices.

The first and second devices to discover and the discoverer are eachcoupled to a processor. The present invention includes systems havingprocessors to provide various functionality to process information, andto determine results based on inputs. Generally, the processing may beachieved with a combination of hardware and software elements. Thehardware aspects may include combinations of operatively coupledhardware components including microprocessors, logical circuitry,communication/networking ports, digital filters, memory, or logicalcircuitry. The processors may be adapted to perform operations specifiedby a computer-executable code, which may be stored on a computerreadable medium.

The steps of the methods described herein may be achieved via anappropriate programmable processing device, such as an externalconventional computer or an on-board field programmable gate array(FPGA) or digital signal processor (DSP), that executes software, orstored instructions. In general, physical processors and/or machinesemployed by embodiments of the present invention for any processing orevaluation may include one or more networked or non-networked generalpurpose computer systems, microprocessors, field programmable gatearrays (FPGA's), digital signal processors (DSP's), micro-controllers,and the like, programmed according to the teachings of the exemplaryembodiments of the present invention, as is appreciated by those skilledin the computer and software arts. Appropriate software can be readilyprepared by programmers of ordinary skill based on the teachings of theexemplary embodiments, as is appreciated by those skilled in thesoftware arts. In addition, the devices and subsystems of the exemplaryembodiments can be implemented by the preparation ofapplication-specific integrated circuits or by interconnecting anappropriate network of conventional component circuits, as isappreciated by those skilled in the electrical arts. Thus, the exemplaryembodiments are not limited to any specific combination of hardwarecircuitry and/or software.

Stored on any one or on a combination of computer readable media, theexemplary embodiments of the present invention may include software forcontrolling the devices and subsystems of the exemplary embodiments, fordriving the devices and subsystems of the exemplary embodiments, forprocessing data and signals, for enabling the devices and subsystems ofthe exemplary embodiments to interact with a human user, and the like.Such software can include, but is not limited to, device drivers,firmware, operating systems, development tools, applications software,and the like. Such computer readable media further can include thecomputer program product of an embodiment of the present invention forperforming all or a portion (if processing is distributed) of theprocessing performed in implementations. Computer code devices of theexemplary embodiments of the present invention can include any suitableinterpretable or executable code mechanism, including but not limited toscripts, interpretable programs, dynamic link libraries (DLLs), Javaclasses and applets, complete executable programs, and the like.Moreover, parts of the processing of the exemplary embodiments of thepresent invention can be distributed for better performance,reliability, cost, and the like.

Common forms of computer-readable media may include, for example, afloppy disk, a flexible disk, hard disk, magnetic tape, any othersuitable magnetic medium, a CD-ROM, CDRW, DVD, any other suitableoptical medium, punch cards, paper tape, optical mark sheets, any othersuitable physical medium with patterns of holes or other opticallyrecognizable indicia, a RAM, a PROM, an EPROM, a FLASH-EPROM, any othersuitable memory chip or cartridge, a carrier wave or any other suitablemedium from which a computer can read.

While particular implementations and applications of the presentdisclosure have been illustrated and described, it is to be understoodthat the present disclosure is not limited to the precise constructionand compositions disclosed herein and that various modifications,changes, and variations can be apparent from the foregoing descriptionswithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as definedin the appended claims.

1-32. (canceled)
 33. A method for discovering a device in acommunication network having a plurality of interconnected devices, themethod comprising: transmitting via the network, by a discoverer device,an IP packet to a downstream device; receiving the IP packet, by saiddevice to discover, wherein said device to discover is located in anetwork path between the discoverer device and the downstream device;detecting and processing, by the device to discover, the IP packet, andtransmitting a response packet to the discoverer device.
 34. The methodof claim 33, wherein the discoverer device is selected from the group ofa testing unit, a router, a remote node that is local or remote to asub-network where the device to discover is located.
 35. The method ofclaim 33, wherein the device to discover borrows a layer-3 addressinginformation of the downstream device to transmit the response packet tothe discoverer device.
 36. The method of claim 33, wherein the IP packetfrom the discoverer device includes a destination IP address of thedownstream device.
 37. The method of claim 33, wherein the IP packetincludes an identifier within its header portion to denote that the IPpacket originates from the discoverer device.
 38. The method of claim33, wherein the IP packet further includes an identifier within itspayload portion to denote that the IP packet is destined for the deviceto discover.
 39. The method of claim 33, wherein the response packetcomprises unique information about the device to discover.
 40. Themethod of claim 33, wherein a payload of the IP packet is encrypted. 41.The method of claim 33, wherein a payload of the IP packet is notencrypted.
 42. A system of discovering a device in a communicationnetwork having multiple interconnected devices, the system comprising: adiscoverer device; a downstream device coupled to the discovered devicevia the network; said device to discover located in a network pathbetween the discoverer device and the downstream device, wherein thedevice to discover is configured to detect and process one or more IPpackets sent by the discoverer to the downstream device, and to transmita response packet to the discoverer device.
 43. The system of claim 42,wherein the discoverer device is selected from the group of a testingunit, a router, a remote node that is local or remote to a sub-networkwhere the device to discover is located.
 44. The system of claim 42,wherein the device to discover borrows a layer-3 addressing informationof the downstream device to transmit the response packet to thediscoverer device.
 45. The system of claim 42, wherein the IP packetfrom the discoverer includes a destination IP address of the downstreamdevice.
 46. The system of claim 42, wherein the IP packet includes anidentifier within its header portion to denote that the IP packetoriginates from the discoverer.
 47. The system of claim 42, wherein theresponse packet comprises unique information about the device todiscover.
 48. The system of claim 42, wherein a payload of the IP packetis encrypted.
 49. The system of claim 42, wherein a payload of the IPpacket is not encrypted.